Conveyer belt supporting mechanism



Oct. 7, 1952 L 2,613,117-

CONVEYER BELT SUPPORTING MECHANISM Original Filed March 8, 1945 5 Sheets-Sheet l Pig/ m PH I IINVENTOR,

' ARTHUR. L. LEE,

fig g l 4 Oct. 7, 1952 A. LEE

CONVEYER BELT SUPPORTING MECHANISM Original Filed March 8, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR, ARTHUR L. LEE.

Oct. 7, 1952 A. L. LEE

CONVEYER BELT SUPPORTING MECHANISM 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Original Filed March 8, 1945 INVENTOR. ARTHUR LEE,

Patented Oct. 7, 1952 T OF F I CE) C'ONVEYER BELTSUPPORTING MECHANISM Arthur: Lea. Upper- Arlington; Ohio, assignor to The Jeffrey Manufacturing Company,v a corporation otO-hib.

Griginal application March 8, 1945,, Serial No.

581,630} now Patent No. 2,592,915, dated April 15, 1952;. Divided'and this application July 26, 19 417,. Serial No. 763,822 I (o1. ace-20) Claims;-

This inyention relates to belt: conveyors. and

more. particularly to mechanism which'supports the traveling; belt thereof.

An object of the invention is. to provide improved simplified .conveyer belt; supporting; mech anisms that are-extremely flexible and rugged; yet: relatively inexpensive.

A further object of the invention is. to provide improved construction for intermediate sections of the; belt conveyor frame includingv improved idler' stand: construction, and. improved chair construction. y i

A further object of the invention-is to provide improved mechanism. for training-both-the work ing and return runs, of the. conveyor belt, or either of them, individually.

Still. another object of the inventionis to pro-. vide; improved mechanism for. training the return idlers. of the intermediate sections. of: the conveyor while also providinaflfor their ready. removal and insertion.

Still another object of the invention. is to pro videimproved idler and. idler supporting, mechanism:.

A further objectaofthe inventionis to provide an improved bearing assembly for. the belt idler.

and toprovide an improved bearing. assembly and associated. supporting and thrust taking.

mechanism. 7

Other. objects of the invention will appear hereinafterfthe novel features and combine tions -being set forth in the appended. claims;

In the accompanying drawings,

.Fig his a perspective view of. an intermediate section of an endlessconveyer, including two chairs and associated idler stands;

Fig. 2- is an enlarged side elevational viewof a. chair and associated idler stand: of the. intermediate section shown in Fig. 1 with intercom. nected pansv of their conveyerframeand a. portionof'the associated belt;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view takeneon line 3-3-of-..Fig;. 2 looking; in; the direction. of the arrows;.

Fig. 4 isan exploded view of the intermediate section of. :the endless belt conveyershow n in Eig; 1, also showing. an associated. chai-rf-andidler stand. together with. the connecting. pen. in' perspective;

Fig: 5 is a-transverse sectional view with. cer- ,tain parts-also shown in section along different troughing idlers 2 the supporting bracket of one of the idler bea-ring. assemblies, with the bearing assembly and part. of the associated pan shown in elevation;

Fig. 7 is a view taken along the line 11'of Fig. 5 lookingin the direction of the arrows;

and

Fig. 8 is an enlarged sectional View of a ball bearing assembly and associated structure.

Thisapplication is av division of my application, Serial No. 581,630, filed March 8, 1945; n0w Patent No. 2,592,915, dated- April 15, 1952, for- Improvements in a- Chair and Idler Roll Stand Assembly for Conveyors. It is tobe understood that the construction and operation of the conveyor of this applica.-' tion follows that of my parent application, above. identified, andthat only the'subject matter pertinent to this application is discussed in detail herein. A Referring; to; Fig. l of the drawings there is. shown a. portion of an endless belt conveyer; The headv and tail section of. the conveyor, .of which: the'portion shown forms. a part, may be constructed in any suitable manner but preferably they are constructed as shown. and described in' my parent application. above identt- .fied, wherein the; conveyer includes at head. or drive section, a foot or tail. section, and; a pluralityof intermediate sections: 23 shown herein, the; number of which may be varied to pro:- Vide' aconveyor: of variable length. The; head section of; the. conveyer may include suitable belt driving and tak'eup pulleys and the tailsection of the c-onveyer includes a foot or tail-pulley' about. which the: endless belt 28 of the con veyer: is reeved to form a topor working run and. a; bottom. or: return run.. The top or worki- "ing run. of. the belt 281 between the head and foot or: fail pulleys is: carried by a plurality: of or rolls: 1:7,. 19 and' the bottom or return-run: of: belt-28' is carriedbyta pl'ufrality of. return i'dlBISQOZ'. rolls; 52. The frame of. the conveyor includes the frames of the: head and tailxsectlons and. an; intermediatev sectional frame portion connecting the head and: tail sec:- tion. framesiwhich. is constructed? of the frame parts: of each-intermediate section 23-, wherein-.- atter-iullyydescribed- 1 Attention is now directed to the'drawings. and to-the construction of the" intermediate: section .23. and; the; constituent parts thereof. Thevlntermediatetsections. 123-,are. built up of: a plurality of spaced: apart similarv chair'J-an'd idler or, roll stand; assemblies 43 which areoi: similar construction.- andthe principal: partsiof. each. of

Each chair 44 is formed of a U-shaped structural steel member having a generally horizontal flat cross-piece or cross plate 41 with a downwardly extending or upright leg or plate 46 ateach end thereof, each leg 48 being provided with a pair of ground engaging feet .49. The feet 49 and adjacent portions of the leg 43 are prefindentations 50. The legs 48 and associated construction on each side of the transverse crosspiece 41 are of similar construction. Each leg or plate 48 includes a centrally disposed opening which is of suflicient size to provide for extending a return idler or roll 52 therethrough, which return idler 52 is supported by the chair 44 in a manner hereinafter described, and which supports the return run of the belt 28 and also provides for training of said return run of the belt.

Adjacent 'each opening 5i is an adjustable bracket assembly 53 which provides for the removable supporting of the adjacent end of the return idler 52 and also provides for adjustment of said supported end forwardly and rearwardly relative to the direction of travel of the belt 28 in a horizontal plane, or, in other words,

provides for training adjustment of said idler The bracket assembly 53 includes a longitudinally extending generally U-shaped strap or plate 54 forming wings having elongated slots 55 adapted to receive-nuts and bolts 56 which attach said wings of the strap 54 to the plateor leg 48 on opposite sides of the opening 5| and adjacent .thereto. Elongated slots '55 providev for the training adjustment of the bracket assembly 53, since they provide for forward and rearward adjustment ofone end of thereturn idler 52 which is supported by said bracket assembly 53.

The inner edges ofthe strap or plate 54 are sheared and bent out to provide guidev tabs .51 which act as guides and abutting means for a pivoted U-shaped bracket 58,. at the upper and inner portion of which there is a U-shaped bearing or supporting member 58 which receives and supports a bearing assembly 60 of the idler 52,-there, of course, being. duplicate bearing assemblies. 60 on opposite ends ofa hollow live shaft 61 (see Fig. 5) of. the idler 52; the ends of thevshaft 6i beingl'weldedto the ends of a cylindrical roller 62 of said idler 52. The shaft 6! extends beyond the ends'of the roller 62 and is supported by the bearing assembly 68 in'a manner similar to that. herein connection with'the troughholds saidbearing assembly 66' against "rotation. This squared projection is also preferably provided with a grease fitting 64 by which the bearing of the bearing assembly GO'isiubricated.

At its bottom, the-bracket or plate 58 is pro 'vided with an elongated pivotal opening 65 v(see .15. erably provided with reinforcing depressionsor 4 connected to and extending between a pair of spaced outwardly extending wings 61 formed on the bottom of the strap or plate 54. The top of the bracket or plate 58 is provided with a pairaor spaced lugs or hooks 68 *(s'e'e Fig. 3), there being one adjacent veach edge and on opposite sides of the U-shaped member 59, the lugs or hooks 88 being adjustable so that they can be lifted over and then moved downwardly to form an' interlocking relation with inward i projections of the strap or plate 54 relativeto opening 5!, as clearly illustrated in Fig. 3 of the drawings.

.The normal assembled relation of the parts of the bracket assembly 53 is illustrated in Figs..-1, 2 and 3 of the drawings, for example,

' and it is to be noted that the co-operating re- Fig. 3), which receives a pivot pin v66v rigidly R7 lation between the hooks 68 and projecting portions of the plate or strap 54 holds the U- shaped bracket 58 in a position to receive and support the idler 52 through the bearing assembly 60. Opposite ends of the idler 52 are supported by the two similar bracket assemblies 53 and bearing assemblies 68. The relation of parts provides a self-aligning type of bearing in a manner which is described more completely hereinafter, in connection with tro'ughingidlers.

The training effect of the idler 52 may be adjusted by adjusting the bracket assembly 53 on either or both of the legs 48 of the chair 44. This of course, is effected by loosening the nuts 56, after which adjustment-they are tightened to clamp the bracket'assemblies 53 in position. An idler 52may be removed from either side of the chair by the simple expedient of first lifting upwardly on the bracket or plate 58, thenlifting the hooks 68 free of the projecting portions of strap or' plate 54, as provided by the elongated pivotal opening 65. Thereupon, the bracket 58 may be swung downwardly and outwardly, as illustrated in Fig. 7 of the drawings, and the idler 52 can be moved outwardly as suggested in said Fig. 7, wherein an idler 52 is shown laterally of a chair 44. I

1 The hollow construction of shaft 6| of the idler 52 also provides for lubricating the bearings of both bearing assemblies 60, by applying grease to one of them. This may be desirable, particularly where only one of the grease fittings 64 is readily accessible. This is-also described more completely in connection with the troughing idler roller, and it is to be understood that the fundamental relation between the roller and bearing'assembly'of the return idler'52 is the same as that of each-troughing idler. Each bracket 58, of course, not only supports the associated bearing assembly 68, but also takes any end thrust on the idler 52.

Referring particularly to Figs. 1 and 4 of the drawings, it will be seenthat upon each chair 44 and forming a part of the assembly 43, is an idler or roll stand 45. Furthermore, intermediate each chair and stand assembly 43 and supported by aninterconnecting pan 46 is a similar idler or roll stand45. Each roll stand 45 includes an 'inverted U-shapecl base or channel 69 which is adapted to rest onthe cross-plate 41 of a chair 44 or on top of an inverted U-shaped pan 45.

The channel 69extends over and is'directly attached to and guided by'an inverted U-shaped idler stand guiding and chair reinforcing member 18 which has feet or wings'on the bottom thereof, which are welded or otherwise rigidly attached to cross-piece 41. ..A similar member 10 isprovided substantially atthe center: of each pan 46 to recieve the associated idler stand 45, and to reinforce said pan- 4t.

In view of'the channel shape-of the base 69 it obviously will fit over the member and the ledges provided by the feet thereof will act as guides to provide alignment of the idler stand 45' on the cross-piece 4 1, or the pan 48, as the case may be.

justme'nt of the angle of the base 69 with respect to the axis of movement of thebelt 28, thusproviding for training action on said belt 28.

The opposite ends of" the U-shaped members 'i'l'l are provided with open slots H through which bolts 12, provided with large square heads 13-, extend, which square heads l3 co-operatewith the sidewalls of the members 16 to prevent ro- The bolts 12 extend tation of the bolts 72. through elongated slots l4 and receive clamping nuts 15. The elongated slots 74 provide the training adjustment of the idler stands 45* above mentioned.

The idler stands lii also include apair'of similar or complementary end brackets 16 which support the outer and upper ends of inclined troughing idlers H, the inner and lower ends of which are supported on spaced-brackets'l8. In addition, a center or horizontal idler I9 is provided, which is supported on spaced brackets 30; all of the brackets abovementioned being mounted on the base 69, with the last mentioned brackets spaced laterally from the others, relative to the axisof said idler stand 45'.

Except for the-inclined'relatioii of-the idlerrollers ll, produced by the fact that the brackets H3 are'longer than the brackets 18, the important structure'of the brackets l6, l8 and 89 is similar. In Figs 5 and 3 of the drawings I have illus-' trated in some detail the structure of the idler l9 and the associated bracket 86 which constitute important contributions of the invention. Said idler 19 includes a'cylindrical roll 8| with integral heads or ends whichare welded or otherwise permanently attachedto a transversely extending hollow shaft 82; In other words, the hollow shaft 821s a live shaft and rotates with the roll 8]. The shaft 82- extends along its own axis beyond the opposite heads of the roll 8 I, forming projections which receive, for example, as by arelatively tight lit, the inner race 83 of a ball bearing assembly designated generally by the reference character 84. l

The ball bearing assembly 88 is identical in construction. to the previously mentioned bearingassembly 68. Itincludes a series of precision balls 85 which ride on the inner race. 83 and within an outer race 86. The ball'bearingformed by. the inner and outer races 83 and 8B and the balls 85 is essentially of standard ball bearing construction, except that the outer periphery of the'outerrace 86 is crowned or is asegment of a sphere.

The ball-bearing Sit-85 is mounted ina casing or' housing 81 which is-preferably formed of mild pressed steel, the casing or housing being open at one side andreceiving a grease seal 88 which closes the opening of the casing in co-operation with the rotating inner race 83. l The outer race 8'6 and casing or housing-81 However, adequate clearance isprovided between the upright webs of the base or are, of course, stationary, and the outer end of the-casing- 87 includesan integral head or plate-- 89; at the center' oi which is ab'oss or projec tion Silwhich has square sides extending into a U-shaped bifurcated clip 91 which co-operates with saidv square bossor projection 901th prevent rotation: of the bearing assembly. 8'4; Furthermore, as bestillustrated:inFig. 60f thedrawings theprongsiof theclipiQl are preferably curved at their pointsflof. contact withxthe head or plate 89 of. casing 81!, thus therewitha. Furthermore; said: spaced pointsof rolling cone tact betweenplthe prongs .zof. clip. 9 l. and said head or plate; ilflilie; in a plane: which passes through the. axis: of the shaft 82,, or; in. other Words.v through the axis of the idler 19, or of the idlers 1],. as the casemay be.. It is thus-evident: that axialithrustslofthe'idlers H or 1.9 are taken by: the bifurcated clips 9:]? along. their axes and thus thereis no'rotating moment which tends tocause twisting. orrotatin-gl of: the bearing-: assemblies .84 in:plan'es.at.right angles to their axes. a The squared sides of the projections or'b sses- 90 also serve an additional purpose. Saidpro-- jections or bosses 9.0? are. provided with grease fittings: 92 which providefor lubricationof the bearings 83-86. As clearly illustrated in Fig.6 of the drawings; thereceiving nipple of these projections extends at. an angleto the axisuof the bearingassembly .84, and thisv nipple may extend to any. one of four different angles, depending uponhow the projection 90 is received by: the prongs of the clipi9i. The grease fitting will be held in any position to which itis thus adjusted. l 1

By referring again toFigs. 5 and ii of. the drawings, it will be seen that at'the center portion the head or plate 89 is close to, but slightly spaced from, the. adjacent face of the inner race 83-. This performs two functions. First of all; itaprovides a. path -or'waywhich offers somerssistance or is'restricted to the 'flow ofgrease which is delivered to the central portion. of? the casing or housing 81 through the fitting: Q2 and boss 90, so that the grease will not all flow to thisimmediate bearing, but a portion of it will flow through. the central bore or passageway. provided by the hollow shaft 82 and thus flowlto the" interior of the other bearing assembly 84 on the other end of the shaft 82. This is-particularly important where, as in some instances, only one of the grease fittings 92 of any idler, is readily reached for lubrication. An illustration of this, of course, -is found in the inclined idler 11, since the inner bearing assemblies are not readily reached for lubrication.

The structure above described also perform another very important function. In view of the flexibility of the integral head or plate 89 which is inherent in its structure and material, it-will readily deflect under force, and thus it is possible, by putting a pipe or fitting over the boss 90, to apply pressure through the head 89 directly on to the inner race 83 without appreciable force traveling through the balls which might cause brinnelling. This'is of particular importance in assembling a bearing assembly 84 on theexposed portion of a shaft 82, as it is desirable that the inner race 83 have a reasonably tight fit with said shaft 82.

Attention is now directed to the mounting of the bearing assemblies 84 The portion of the casing 81, which is in close contact with the crowned outer: surface ofithe outer race 86,

providin'gza. rolling contact provides an outer bearing surface which is substantially a portion of a sphere, for example, a portion which might result from cutting a sphere by two spaced parallel planes equidistant from the major diameter thereof. In other words, if a plane were passed substantially through the center of the balls 85, it would cut a circle. If a plane were passed through the, axis of the shaft 82- which is the same as the axis of the idler H or 19 and the axis of the bearing assembly 84, this plane would cut the housing 81 and on the top and bottom it would be alon an are which is preferably an arc of a circle, though it need not be so. provided it has asomewhat arcuatesurface. The section of'the. hearing assembly 84, seen in Fig. 5, is taken along such a plane.

..'I'hus, this bearing surface which is essentially asegment of a, sphere and. which is designated 93,.Lwill have a rolling contact with a co-operating U-shaped receiving portion 94 of the brackets 16, 18 or 80, as the case may be. In other words, insofar as said receiving portion 94 is concerned, it is the same on each of the brackets I6, '18

and 80. i

This U-shaped receivingportionis generally fiat, as viewed. insection in a-plane. passing through the axis. of shaft 82 orfidler H or 19, as the case may be. It is obvious, ofv course, that the bearing surface provided'by the receiving portion 94 may, ifdesired, be made convex in the inclined plane, and the bearing surface 93 might be made substantially cylindrical and produce a similar result. The important characteristic is that one of these surfaces should be convex relative to the other, as viewed in any plane through the axis thereof, thus to, provide a.rolling contact-between the two bearing .surfaces 93and 94.

Also, as best illustrated in Fig..-7 of the drawings, the peripheral .contacts between the bearing surfaces 93 and 94 extends overan .areawhich is preferably substantially 180.and is desirably.

at least 90 in extent.v

In .Fig. '7 f the drawings, the clearance provided for the insertion and removal .of. the bearing assembly 84in the receiving portion 94 of bracket. 16, has been slightly exaggerated.

The structure of each bearing assembly 84 and co-operating supporting and end thrust taking structures is of considerablev importance. First of all, the bearing surface 93-has a large radial angle of contact with the supporting surface 94 and thus it will not become grooved, flat, or unduly worn. At the same time, the bearing assembly 84 isheld against rattling in the associated bracket-,- since thecontact between the bearing surfaces 9'3and 94 extends preferably over 180. i

It has been found in practice;thatiirregularities in manufacture quite generally produce some cyclic oscillation of portions of thebearings. -In many such devices, where the inner and outer races of the bearings are held rigid, this produces binding and undesirable friction; f In myliare rangement, the bearing surface 93 is freetojroll, as required for each cycle'of operatiomon the bearing surface 94, thus eliminatinganyjunder. sirable binding or friction during operation. Furthermore, since theinner'race ofthe bearing is the one that rotatesfand since. its peripheral diameter is less. than thatv of theouter'rac'e, it is obvious that the frictionaldrag inherently produced by the rotation of the ballsof the, bear: ing will be a minimum and will belessthan that where the outer race is the rotating one, and the inner race the stationary one. Still further, since the axial thrust is taken along a plane passing through the axes of the idlers, there will be no twisting effect on the bearing assemblies 84.

The rollers, bearings and the supports therefor as well as the self-aligning features provided thereby are claimed in my co-pending application, Ser. No. 704,783, filed October 21, 1946, now Patent No. 2,554,037, dated May 22, 1951, for a belt conveyer.

Referring now to Figs. 1, 4 and 5 of the drawings, it will be seen that each of the U-shaped pans 46 includes a rolled reinforcing bead adjacent its bottom edge and at each end is provided with a pair of spaced holes 96 each adapted to receive and extend over a pin or projection 91 on the chair 44. It is obvious that each chain 44 will have four pins 91, one adjacent each corner of the cross-piece 41 thereof, and that the opposite ends of each pan 46 will be supported on adjacent chairs and held there by a pair of pins 91.

Furthermore, adjacent each end, the pan 46 is provided with a U-shaped reinforcing and wear strap 98 which is welded or otherwise rigidly attached to the inner face of said pan 46 adjacent each end.

To provide a smooth contour between the edges of the pans 46 and the chairs 44, for example, as best illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawings, each chair is recessed at its opposite sides, both on the cross-piece 41 and on a portion of each 5 leg 48, to receive the strap 98 and the end portion of each pan 46; these recesses being desig-v nated 99. Also both the top and side portions of each recess 99 are provided with depressions or indentations I09 which reinforce these por tions of the chair 44 and also act to provide smooth or rounded surfaces which may be contacted by thetop or the edges of the return run of the belt 28. In other Words, this prevents the return run of the belt 28 contacting sharp or cutting edges and thus prevents damage being done to it.

From the above description, it is obvious that elements of the intermediate sections 23 of the belt conveyer may be broken down into a great many small parts and this is of importance in the transportation of intermediate sections, since they may be laid on top the belt and delivered to the point where they are to be used. In the drawings and in the preferred embodiment. of the invention, the pans 46 are shown as one piece pans. If desired, however, they may be split down the middle or may be split into three parts, including a central portion and two side parts. If any such splitting is done, it may be desired to employ additional pins or projections 91, to the end that each portion or at least each outside portion will have two pins holding it to each chair 44.

It is further obvious that I have provided a belt conveyer intermediate section construction in which both the Working and return runs of the belt may be trained. Furthermore, it is possible to remove an idler stand 45 and all its idlers, while other idler stands on opposite sides theerof are supporting the belt. For example, the idler stand 45 supported by pan 46, may be removed, while the belt 28 is supported by idler stands on the chairs 44, or vice versa.

It is, of course, obvious that each individual idler 11 or 19 may be removed and'replaced by the simple fexpedient "of lifting it upwardly; out

by swinging its'supporting bracket :52 downwardly-and removing the idler 52throug-h an opening 5|. The other features of the belt conveyer are believed evident from the-"previous description thereof.

- It will also-be obvious that I have provided an idler roll assembly and bearing therefor wherein the bearing is substantially'asealed unit that is adapted to be pressed upon the idler roll shaft by pressure applied to the head, plate, or outer shell of the bearing andthat during the pressingoperation the outer shell of the. =bearing will deflect against connector race of the bearing to transfer the appliedpressure directly to the innerira'ce of the bearing thereby eliminating the danger of brinnelling of balls and races of the bearings. i

It will also be obvious that the proximity of the outer shell to the inner race of thebearing provides a restriction th Qu h which lubricant must pass to'reach th'e'balls of the bearing and that this restriction causes lubricant to be forced whenthe bearings are being, lubricated-through the hollow live shaft of the roll to the opposing the ballsof both bearings.

.Obviously those skilled in the art may-make various changes in the details and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the claims hereto appended, and I therefore wish not to be restricted to the precise construction herein disclosed.

Having thus described and shown an embodiment of the invention, what I desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. A belt idler mechanism including a roller and a live hollow shaft rigidly attached thereto, spaced anti-friction bearing means for opposite ends of said shaft including inner and outer races,

separate housings for said spaced bearing means, and means for lubricating one of said bearing housings direct, said hollow live shaft communieating with the housing of the other bearing to communicate lubricating material thereto which is fed to said one bearing housing, said one housin being formed near the inner race of the adjacent bearing to restrict the flow of lubricating fluid to its bearing which is fed to said one housing thereby encouraging it to flow to said other bearing housing through said live hollow shaft.

2. A belt idler mechanism including an antifriction bearing having inner and outer races, and a one-piece pressed steel casing for said bearing, said casing having an outer portion receiving said outer race and provided with an and a one-piece casing for said bearing, said casing having an outer portion receiving said outer race and provided with an outer wall closing one side of said casing, said closing outer wall being close to but spaced slightly from the inner race and being deflectable under pressure 10 to contactzsaid inner race,'whereby;pressure near the center'nf said closing wall may be trans- 'mitted to said inner :race directly through said wall.

.4. A belt idler mechanism including a roller having :end heads 'and a hollow live shaft extending axially itherethrough, said hollow live shaft projecting through and being-rigidly attached to said end heads to rotate with said roller, spacedanti-friction bearing means on opbearing means each having a one-piece pressed steel casing includinga generally cylindrical portion receiving said/outer race and having close contact .over substantially the entire outer surface thereof; said generally cylindrical portion having an outer :bearing surface formed as a :segment of raggenerally spherical surface and :at one side "receiving a:grease seal which cooperates to enclose one side-of the anti-friction bearing, said casing at the other side forming a plate having a central squared projection, said spherical surfaces and said squared projections being adapted to be received by bracket means cooperating with said squared projections to prevent rotation of-saidouter raceand cooperatingwith said-spherical surfaces to support 'said roller, said plate portion of said casing being slightly spaced from an adjacent face of the inner race and providing a restricted way through which grease must flow from said squared projection toreach said anti-friction bearing, said restricted way encouraging grease applied under pressure to the adjacent squared projection to flow through said hollow live shaft to the other bearing means.

5. A bearing assembly including an inner race adapted to be pressed onto a shaft, an outer race, a one-piece pressed steel casing for said bearing including a cylindrical portion receiving said outer race, and a side forming plate having a central squared projection adapted to receive a grease fitting, said squared projection being adapted to be received by bracket means cooperating therewith to prevent rotation of said casing on the bearing axis, said plate portion being slightly spaced from an adjacent face of the inner race and providing a restricted way through which grease must flow from said squared projection to reach said bearing and being deflectable against the adjacent face of said inner race whereby said race may be pressed onto said shaft by pressure applied through said plate portion.

6. A bearing assembly including an inner race adapted to be pressed onto a shaft, an outer race, and a one-piece pressed steel casing for said bearing including a cylindrical portion receiving said outer race and a side forming plate having a central squared projection, said squared projection being adapted to be received by a bracket means cooperating therewith to prevent rotation of said casing on the bearing axis, said plate portion. bein slightly spaced from an adjacent face of the inner race and being defiectable against the adjacent face of said inner race whereby said race may be pressed onto said shaft by pressure applied through said plate portion.

7 7. A belt idler mechanism including an antifriction bearing having inner and outer bearing races and a pressed steel one-piece casing for said bearing including a portion-formed gen eraliy as a segment of a sphere directly receiving jection' extending axially-therefrom adapted to receive a grease fitting and to be-engaged by means for preventing axial rotation of the casing with respect to its mounting bracket.

8. A belt idler mechanism including an antifriction bearing having inner and outer bearing races-and a pressed steel one-piece casing for said bearing including a portion formed generally as a segmentzof a sphere directly receiving said outer bearing race, said generally spherical po'rtion'of said casing forming an outer bearing surface adapted to be received directly in a mounting bracket, said one-piece casing including an integral closure on one side having a'projection extending axially therefrom adapted to be engaged by means for preventing axial rotation of the casing with respect'to its mounting bracket.

9. A one-piece pressed steel casing for a hearing including a portion adapted to receive said bearingand formed generally as a segment of a sphere, said generally spherical portion of said casing forming an outer bearing surface adapted tobe received directly in a mountingbracket,

and said one-piece casing including an integral closure on one side having a projection extending axially therefrom adapted to receive a grease fitting and to be engaged by means for preventing axial rotation of the casing with respect to its supporting bracket.

10. A one-piece pressed steel casing for a bearing including a portion adapted to receive'said bearing and formed generally as a segment of a sphere, said generally spherical portion of said casing forming an outer bearing surface adapted to be received directly in a mounting bracket,

and said one-piece casing including an integral closure on one side having a projection extending axially therefrom adapted to be engaged by means for preventing axial rotation of the casing with respect to its supporting bracket.

ARTHUR L. LEE."

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

